DP Environmental Systems and Societies Questionbank

To what extent is pollution impacting human food production systems?

Explain the causes and effects of acid deposition on natural ecosystems.

Outline, using examples, the differences between primary and secondary pollution.

Pollution management strategies may be applied at any of the three levels identified in the diagram below:

With reference to acid deposition, evaluate the political and economic advantages of applying management strategies at the levels of production and impact of the pollutant.

Apart from global warming and ozone-depletion, state one pollution problem that may affect a number of countries.

The impacts of acid rain on terrestrial ecosystems may include acidified soils, leaching of nutrients, release of toxins and damage to vegetation. The impacts of global warming on these systems may include desertification, flooding, loss of species and shifting of biomes.

For terrestrial ecosystems, discuss the difficulty of managing the impacts of acid rain compared to that of managing the impacts of global warming.

Urban air pollution can become a problem as human populations develop. Evaluate urban air pollution management strategies at the three levels of intervention.

With reference to named examples, distinguish between a primary and secondary pollutant.

Disturbance of the composition and processes of the atmospheric system through human activity always disturbs the equilibria of marine systems.

Discuss the validity of this statement with reference to named examples.

Pollution management strategies may be aimed at either preventing the production of pollutants or limiting their release into ecosystems.

With reference to either acid deposition or eutrophication, evaluate the relative efficiency of these two approaches to management.